Composite cotter pin arrangement



Jan. 14, 1930. G. A. JOHNSON I COMPOSITE COTTER PIN ARRANGEMENT Filed Dec. 18 1925 vr n 7 MM F M W r W E 6 r u 5 k wv w iIIIMIII IIIPI dd v /0 Wifrzeaa Patented Jan. 14, 1930 om'reo PLATE-NT OFFIQE eaoncn A. oonnson, or CHICAGO, tremors, ASSIGNOR mo -11. ivrmna, 1nd,, or

c rroneo, rmlrnorsn GORPOBA'I'IQN or DELAWARE COMlOSITE CUTTER PIS ARRANGEMENT Application filed December This invention relates to composite cotter pin arrangements.

In railway construction, as in many other arts, the type or" cotter pin most universally JSEd to secure certain members together, is in the form of an elongated piece, of metal looped intermediate its ends to provide an enlarged head, and having the remaining portions in the form of adjacent parallel legs adapted to be inserted into an opening in one of the members to be secured, the ends of the legs subsequently being separated or spread apart to prevent Withdrawal of the pin from the member, the cotter providing 5 an abutment to prevent separation of the members. lVhile this construction is exceed ingiy convenient and efiicient, it is open to several very serious objections, an important 7 one being its small resistance to wear, and this is usually due to its loose fit and consequent excessive vibration, and to the fact. that the parts of the pin which sustain the strains present a relatively small thickness of material which is quickly worn through and permits the separation of the members with which it is associated, sometimes with serious consequences, such, for instance, in the case of connecting rods between the brake. levers of a railway train" in connection with which it is commonly used.

An object of my invention is to provide a composite cotter pin arrangement which comprises twin cooperating members of simple form which may be inserted into an opening '35 in one or the members in such manner as to wedge the parts of the 'keyin position and prevent vibration thereof as well as accidental removal therefrom, and which in position affords an increased amount of material subject to wear.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a fragment'of a brake connecting rod, a brake lever, and a connecting pin, showing my invention in connection with the connecting pin. Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the brake members shown in Figure 1, disclosing a side elevation of my cotter pin arrangement.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 5 denotes a fragment of a brake connecting rod 7 form? g havin a torhede d per-tron =6, the mitations of the forked portion oi the connecting rod being ada ter-He receive therehetween the end of a brake lever 7, the 'i urc'ations oi the connecting rod and the end ef the brake lever being apertm-ed to permitthe passage of a connecting pin S having a head-9 ada- 'qted to abut against the outer face of the forked e-nd at the connecting rod, extending through the parts and outwardly beyond the oppo site side of the forked end ot the connecting as indicated 10,t11eene1"1 0 the pin 8 being provided with an annular bore 11 in the n l manner. The construction above dese lie of a common tor-n1, and no cl-aim is made herein to the same except in coin junction with the cotter pin arrangement the subject matter of my invention, which tviii new :hedeserihed.

The invention contemplates the use f a cotter pin arrangement made up of two idennearly similar parts, e of which inciedes an elongated piece -01 red "having a shank 12, rounded on the outer side fl-at on the inner side, one end of saiclshank being rovided wit 1 curved portion 1-3 which provid'es a head or eye at one end, the shank bein centrally dispose-d with reference to the cur-red portion 13. r

As above stated, two of the cotter pin memhere arentnieedih securing the cohne'ctin-g in 8 in position, the hotter pin 'i'neinbers bein identical in construction, and "consequently the same reference characters win be used to indicate "the simiia'iparts ofhoth.

WV he'n it is desired to secure the composite co't'te'r pin in pesiti-on to hold the parts together, the opposite ends of th'eslia'nks 12 of each cotter pin are inserted into the opening 11 from the op osite ends thereof, the two members driven or pressed towarcleaeh other, caiising the freeehds of the shanks to come ihtee rntaet with the opposed heads or the members, continued approach oi: said mean her causing a deflection out or straighthhe ath of the tree end of the shank of each an-em ber by reason of contact therewith with the adjacent header the other memb r as indi .Cated at 14, causin the members it heaved-gee intranet-omens thus preventing vib ation at the parts in the bore 11, and presenting three thicknesses of material at both ends of the cotter pin arrangement, instead of two thicknesses of material, as in the case of the. ordinary cotter pin construction.

The invention also contemplates a method of providing a cotter pin abutment upon a member consisting in the use of cotter pin members of the character above described, or of similar headed shank members adapted to be inserted into a bore in the member upon which the abutment is to be formed, said method consisting in inserting the shank of one headed member into an opening in the supporting member from one side thereof, then inserting the shank of a headed cotter member into said opening from the opposite side of said member, and driving the free ends of the shanks against the opposite heads of said members to deflect the same out of a straight line path and secure the same against accidental withdrawal. It will be appreciated that cotter pins of an ordinary character might be used in carrying out this method,

1 and that due to the presence of the free end of the cotter member wedged in position by the ly illustrative and I contemplate all changes and modificationsthat come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. A cotter pin member, including a shank portion anda head portion, said shank and head being composed of a continuous rod member fiat on one side and round on the other and of uniform cross section, said headed portion being a loop shaped continuation of said shank portion bent in the form of a complete eye with the fiat side of said rod member outermost.

2. A cotter pin for connecting devices provided with cotter pin receiving openings,

comprising a pair of rod members each of uniform cross section throughout, each member including an elongated shank portion and a head member forming a continuation of the shank portion, said head member forming an ofiset portion with respect to the shank portion, the shank portions being disposed in lengthwise contact side by side and extending through the opening of said devices when applied in retaining position and said shank portionsbeing reversely arranged with the head members disposed at opposite ends of the pin the head member of each rod member projecting laterallybeyo'nd theplane of longitudinal contact of said rod jmembers and. 

